Quantum Leap
Season 4, Episode 18:
It's A Wonderful Leap
Teleplay by Danielle Alexandra and Paul Brown; Story by Danielle Alexandra
Directed by Paul Brown
Airdate: April 1, 1992
May 10, 1958
Moments after leaping into a New York cabbie, Sam crosses paths with an eccentric woman who claims to be his guardian angel.
Tropes:
- Actor Allusion: The mere fact that Sam leaps into a cabbie is one given who Scott Bakula played in one of his first roles
. - Ambiguous Situation: The episode, at no point, outright makes it clear if Angelita is actually an angel. The closest thing to hardline proof is at the end, when after she kisses Sam before leaving, Sam seemingly forgets ever having interacted with her, much to Al's confusion (tellingly, she said everyone "in this time" would forget her, yet Al remembers her just fine. One wonders if Sam remembered her too and was just trolling him at the end).note
- Angelic Transformation: Angelita claims to be a deceased-human-now-guardian-angel for Sam.
- Arbitrary Skepticism: Considering a previous episode showcased Al's fears about the Bermuda Triangle, and how he and Sam have encountered actual ghosts, the fact that it takes Al until the end of the episode to consider that Angelita might actually be an angel comes off as this.
- Big Beautiful Woman: Lenny is noticeably taken in by Angelita’s looks and charm.
- Bling-Bling-BANG!: The gun used to rob Sam by one of Max's fellow cabbies is a distinctive nickle plated revolver with pearl grips, which just so happens to belong to his own boss. Had a less ostentatious firearm been used, it might have aroused less suspicion.
- Borrowed Catchphrase: Angelita's response upon Al announcing the existence of a Spanish singer that matches Angelita's description... that died in 1928?Angelita: (cheerfully; to a shocked Sam) Oh boy!
- Catch-22 Dilemma: According to Ziggy, when Max goes on his taxi route the day after Sam leaps in, he gets shot and killed. And also according to Ziggy, Sam is there to make sure he wins the taxi fare contestnote . Except in order to make up the difference, he needs to do the route tomorrow.
- Christmas Episode: Defied: Despite the title and the involvement of a guardian angel, this episode neither took place nor aired at Christmastime.
- Continuity Nod:
- Angelita keeps referring to Al as a Devil.
- As Al reminds Sam, insane people are able to see him.
- Deadpan Snarker: Angelita and Al are finely matched opponents at this.
- Exact Words: When Lenny catches Sam talking to Al in the kitchen, he cracks that either he's too drunk, or his son is talking to thin air. Sam confirms the latter.
- Foreshadowing: In regards to the next episode: the ending leap-in sees Sam as a doctor at a hospital, who is then attacked by a husband for failing to save his wife. The musical cue used to end the clip is not unlike one used in a soap opera...
- Guardian Angel: Angelita claims to be Sam’s.
- Just Ignore It: After it comes to light that Angelita could see Al all along, she explains that she had been ignoring him earlier under a belief that he would go away.
- Laser-Guided Amnesia: Angelita claims that everyone "in this time" will forget about her when she leaves. Everyone does, except for Al, who is in another time period.Sam: Al, come on, there's no such thing as angels...
(Al looks at Sam in shock) - Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Seconds after leaping in behind the steering wheel of a taxi, Sam takes a glance at his reflection in the side mirror... and fails to notice Angelita rush out in front of him until he hits her.
- Pursue the Dream Job: Max and Lenny’s dream is to have their own cab company. They achieve this in the end and while their company consists of only a single cab, that’s all they really wanted.
- Our Angels Are Different: No haloes, no wings and, unlike most theologies, Angelita was once a mortal woman.
- Overly Long Name: Angelita Carmen Guadalupe Cecelia Jimenez.
- Rage Breaking Point: Upon learning that his son was denied winning the contest, and was also fired, Lenny barges into Frank's office with a gun to try and force him to give up the medallion.
- Real After All: Sam and Al think Angelita is crazy, but ultimately harmless. They later discover she’s really an angel after taking a bullet and not dying or even being wounded. When she leaves, everyone forgets about her just as she said they would.
- Rigged Contest: The cab company is offering a licensing medallion to the cabby who wins the contest, but have made the sales goal almost impossible to attain. When Max (and Sam in his place) come close, they arranged to have Max mugged to fall short of the goal.
- Spicy Latina: Angelita is boisterous and proud of her heritage.
- Wham Line:
- When Al is talking shit about Angelita, believing she intentionally threw herself in front of Sam's cab as part of a scheme to get money, Angelita fires back in response:Angelita: (gasp) You should not be tempted to listen to that devil! He doesn't know what he's talking about!
(Sam and Al look at each other in concern)
Sam: (as casually as possible; looks around the garage with Al) And which devil might you be talking about?
Angelita: (gestures to Al) The one in the horrible red suit.
(Sam and Al spin around in shock) - Sam and Al are both thrown when Angelita is ready to leave...Angelita: You're gonna forget about me; but I will always remember you, Sam.
Sam: Sam?
Angelita: Who do you think I was sent here to really look after? - The topper after she walks off...Al: Are you going to go after her?
Sam: After who?
Al: Angelita! The angel!
Sam: Oh, come on, Al, there's no such things as angels.
- When Al is talking shit about Angelita, believing she intentionally threw herself in front of Sam's cab as part of a scheme to get money, Angelita fires back in response:
- What the Hell, Hero?:
- Sam's first act upon entering this leap is accidentally running over Angelita. And when he begins pounding on her chest (due to not finding a pulse when checking on her), she punches him in the head in turn.
- Downplayed: After learning about this incident, Al is mildly shocked, but then clarifies that he didn't think Sam did it intentionally...
- You Can See Me?: To Sam and Al's shock, Angelita can see (and hear) Al, despite him being a hologram. While Al chalks this up to her being insane, Angelita explains it's because she's an angel.
- Young Future Famous People: Sam tells the son of a businessman about the future of New York real estate developments. His passengers turn out to be Fred Trump and his son, Donald.
Al: They must serve plenty of sweets in Heaven.
Angelita: You’re never gonna get there, so you’re never gonna know.
Al: What do you mean? Why not?
Angelita: There’s a dress code.
Angelita: You’re never gonna get there, so you’re never gonna know.
Al: What do you mean? Why not?
Angelita: There’s a dress code.
